Tile press mechanism



Dec. 14, 1965 H. w. LAMB TILE PRESS MECHANISM 6 Sheets-Sheet 1 Harold WZamb Original Filed Oct. 12, 1962 INVENTOR.

y q V WW4) Dec. 14, 1965 Original Filed Oct. 12, 1962 H. W. LAMB TILEPRESS MECHANISM 6 Sheets-Sheet 2 Harold Lamb INVENTOR.

BY w- WM Dec. 14, 1965 H. w. LAMB TILE PRESS MECHANISM 6 Sheets-Sheet 5Original Filed Oct. 12, 1962 Harold WTLamb INVENTOR.

BY 44/- WX/MQ HTTORNEy Dec. 14, 1965 H. w. LAMB 3,222,748

TILE PRESS MECHANISM Original Filed Oct. 12, 1962 6 Sheets-Sheet 4 H' INh,

F tg- 6 Harold PVT Lamb INVENTOR.

BY %1 w- WM fl T 7-0R/vEy Dec. 14, 1965 H. w. LAMB TILE PRESS MECHANISM6 Sheets-Sheet 5 Original Filed Oct. 12, 1962 I A v i 46 ALA- 4; fill/IAHaroid 74/7 Lamb INVENTOR.

,4 TT'OR/VEy Dec. 14, 1965 H. w. LAMB TILE PRESS MECHANISM 6Sheets-Sheet 6 Original Filed Oct. 12, 1962 Hare Z d VVfLam b INVENTOR.

BY 4 2. WW 6Q ,4 r mRA/Ey United States Patent Ofifice 3,222,748Patented Dec. 14, 1965 3,222,748 TILE PRESS MECHANISM Harold W. Lamb,Washington Crossing, N.J., assignor to This is a division ofapplication, Serial No. 230,044, filed October 12, 1962, now Patent No.3,179,998.

This invention relates to power presses of the general type employed incompressing pulverized clay, or other pulverized material, into tile orother compact products, adaptable to such press and die operations.

In presses of the type referred to, the die cavity is formed by means ofa die case, surrounding and slidable on a vertical, stationary diemember in a telescopic manner, and the tile is ejected from the cavityby lowering the die case. The clay dust for a new tile is supplied tothe die cavity by means of a rectangular dust box or tray, which firstpushes the previously completed tile from the cavity area, after whichthe die case is immediately raised, and the cavity formed thereby isfilled with clay dust, by the sweeping or wiping action of the dust box,as it passes over the cavity. The dust box is then returned to itsstarting position, and the ram member of the press, shaped for closefitting insertion into the die cavity, is lowered into the cavity tocompact the clay dust therein into a tile.

In previous presses of the type mentioned, the impact of the ram memberon the clay dust in the die cavity is efifected by mechanical power, andhas been found to have the serious disadvantage of trapping air in theclay dust, due to the rapidity and force of the impact, and therebyresulting in defective tile.

Therefore, one of the principal objects of the present invention is toprovide a tile press having means for effecting an initial retardedimpact on the clay dust for forcing the air from the dust, followedimmediately by a more rapid and heavier impact for forming the completedtile. For the purposes of this invention, I employ two heavy impactmembers, one above the other, the lowermost of which is suspended fromthe other in vertically spaced and movable relation, and from which theram depends; and the uppermost of which is attached to the piston rod ofan air cylinder having electircal control valve means for simultaneouslyadmitting air pressure into both ends of the cylinder for effecting aretarded lowering of both impact members until the ram slightly pressesthe dust in the die cavity, and then releasing the air pressure from thelower end of the cylinder while maintaining the air pressure in theupper end, thereby effecting an accelerated and heavy impact of theuppermost impact member upon the lowermost member, the force of whichimpact is transmitted to the ram and the clay dust of the die cavity.The initial force exerted by the ram as it comes into the clay dust andcompresses it, is adjustable and controllable by the weight andcooperation of the lowermost or suspended member, and by the speed withwhich it is lowered which, in turn, is determined by the speed andlength of travel between this member in its upper starting position, andits position upon contact of the uppermost member therewith.

The speed of the simultaneous downward movement of the impact members,is controlled by a differential of air pressure above and below thepiston to which the uppermost impact member is attached and/or also, thetransverse area or diameter of the piston rod, which traverses thebottom portion of the cylinder, and the diameter of I the piston, andcreates a preponderance of pressure above the piston, which may befurther varied by means of regulators in the air pressure lines.

The vertical space between the lowermost and uppermost impact membersmay also be varied as required by the axial adjustment of the rods uponwhich they are slidably mounted. The greater the spacing, the moreacceleration of movement of the uppermost member and, consequently, thegreater the force of impact of the uppermost upon the lowermost member.

In previous presses of the type mentioned, the dust box is supplied withclay dust at only one side of the press, so that after the initialstroke, or horizontal movement of the dust box across the die cavity, todeposit therein the clay dust for the next tile, the dust box isreturned to its starting position, for another supply of dust. In orderto insure a complete filling of the die cavity, the dust box isnecessarily supplied with a greater quantity of clay dust than thatrequired to fill the die cavity. Consequently, in its return passageover the die cavity, the back end of the box drags, and impacts moredust into that already in the die cavity, especially toward the frontedge of the cavity, resulting in a tile of uneven thickness andcompactness.

Therefore, another, and important, object of this invention is toprovide a tile press of the character referred to, having means forsupplying clay dust to the dust box on each side of the press, so thatthe die cavity is filled with clay dust by a single stroke of the dustbox across the cavity, resulting in an even, uniform filling of thecavity.

It is to the mechanism referred to in the last two preceding paragraphsthat the claims in this divisional application are directed.

Other objects and advantages of my improved tile press mechanismreferred to, will be apparent, or pointed out in the followingspecification in which reference is had to the accompanying drawing,forming a part thereof, and in which:

FIG. 1 is a front elevation of a tile press, in accordance with thepresent invention, with some of the parts omitted in the illustration;

FIG. 2 is a section taken on the line 22 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a section taken on the line 33 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a section taken on the line 4-4 of FIG. 3, with the aircylinder shown exteriorly;

FIG. 5 is a section taken on line 55 of FIG. 4, with the air cylinderalso shown exteriorly;

FIG. 6 is a section taken on the line 6-6 of FIG. 2;

FIG. 7 is a detail section similar to FIG. 2, and showing the initialimpact of the press ram;

FIG. 8 is a similar detail view showing the completion of a tile;

FIG. 9 is a similar view showing a completed tile being pushed by theclay dust box from the area of the die cavity; and

FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram showing the arrangement of the-severalair cylinders, electrical pressure control valves and switches employedin the press illustrated.

Referring to the drawing in which like reference characters designatelike parts in the several views, 10 is a vertical press base upon whichis mounted a pair of heavy metal impact members 12 and 14, one above theother. The lowermost impact member 14 is suspended from the uppermostmember 12 in vertically spaced and unrestrained slidable relation on aplurality of rods 16 which are threaded into the member 14 to providemeans for adjusting the space between the two members, each of which isnotched on one edge, as indicated at 18 (FIGS. 3 and 5) for engagementwith a V-shaped guide member 20 mounted on the press base 10.

The uppermost impact member 12 is rigidly attached to the piston rod 22of an air cylinder A, the ends of which are closed and in communicationwith a source of air pressure through pipes 24 and 26 having airpressure regulators 25 and 27 and electrical control valves A1 and A4.The press ram 28 is rigidly attached to the lowermost impact member 14in depending relation therewith. One edge of the uppermost member 12 isprovided with a socket 30 for engagement therein of horizontal latch bar32 which is attached to the piston rod 34 of an air cylinder B mountedon the press base 10 and the ends of which are in communication with asource of air pressure through pipes 38 and 40 provided with electricalcontrol valves B-1 and B-3. This latch bar is slidably inserted into thesocket to hold the members 12 and 14 in their uppermost startingpositions and is withdrawn to permit downward movement of those members.The members 12 and 14 may be made of cast iron and provided with steelcontact plates 12-a and 14-a. The bottom of the inner end of the bar isinclined as shown at 33 (FIG. 4) and upon the upward movement of member12 is retracted by contact with a beveled portion 35 in the upper edgeof the member 12.

A stationary and vertically elongated die member 42 is mounted on ahorizontal portion 44 of the press base, and a die case 46 is slidablyor telescopically mounted over the die member 42 for forming a diecavity below the ram 28. The die case 46 is attached through rods 48 andyoke 50 to the piston rod 52 of an air cylinder C, the ends of which arein communication with a source of air pressure through pipes 54 and 56having electrical control valves C-1 and -4. The upward movement of thepiston rod 56 and die case 46 is limited by an adjustable wedge device58 operated by a handle 60. The downward movement of the piston rod 52is limited by vertical rods 62 adjustably mounted at their lower ends ina plate 62 on the bottom of the cylinder C and in abutting engagement attheir upper ends with the yoke 50.

The horizontal plate or platform 66 is rigidly attached to the top ofthe die case 46 with its top surface flush with that of the die case andextends a substantial distance forwardly and rearwardly of he die case.A rectangular clay dust box or tray 68 having an open bottom is mountedon the platform for slidable movement thereon across a die cavity formedby the stationary member 42 and the die case 46 in either direction. Thedust box has projecting portions or bumpers 70 and 72 at its ends forpushing completed tile from the die cavity in advance of the arrival ofthe dust box over the die cavity. One end of the dust box 68 is attachedby means of an offset connection to the piston rod 74 of an air cylinderD which is in parallel but offset relation with the path of travel ofthe dust box. As shown, the air cylinder is laterally offset but,obviously, it could be offset from the dust box by elevating the aircylinder above the platform 16 at a sufficient height to clear the dustbox during its back and forth travel across the die cavity. The aircylinder D has communication at its ends with a source of air pressurethrough pipes 80 and 82 which are provided with electrical pressurecontrol valves D-1 and D-3.

As illustrated, the dust box 68 is supplied with clay dust at each endof its stroke from hoppers 84 and 86 in which their bottom outlet endsare closed by pivotally mounted gates 88 and 90 provided with operatinglevers 92 and 94 which are connected, respectively, to the piston rods96 and 98 of air cylinders E and P which are in communication with asource of air pressure through pipes 100, 102, 104 and 106 havingelectrical pressure control valves El, E3, F-l and F3.

The diagram FIG. schematically indicates the arrangement of the variousair cylinders, electrical pressure control valves and switches at theend of one stroke of the dust box 68, after pushing a completed tile Tfrom the area of the die cavity and filling the die cavity with claydust 108, as shown in FIG. 2. The connections of the switches with theelectrical valves are indicated in broken linking lines. As shown in thediagram, air pressure is on the bottom of cylinder A through switch A5and contact A-6, having returned the piston P, together with the impactmembers 12 and 14 to their uppermost starting positions. Air pressure ison the back of cylinder B through switch B-4 and contact B-S, havinginserted the latch bar 32 into the socket 30 in the upper impact member12. Air pressure is on the bottom of cylinder C through switch C2,contact C-3 and valve C-1 holding the die case 46 together with theplatform 16 in its raised or cavity forming position. Air pressure is onthe front of cylinder D through switch D2, contact D-5 and valve D1,holding dust box 68 in its starting position. Air pressure is on theback ends of cylinders E and F through switch E2 and contact E-S andthrough switch F-2 and contact F5, holding the gates 88 and in closedposition.

Although the electrical valves and switches are shown schematically inseparate relation, in actual practice, they are all coordinated into anautomatic timing switch unit, connected in an electrical circuit EC, sothat when started into operation by closing a switch 110, the aircylinders will function in cooperative sequence until the switch isagain opened. Since such timing units are conventional and form no partof the present invention, illustration of details is omitted in thedrawing.

FIG. 7 shows the ram 28 upon its initial retarded impact on the claydust 108 in the die cavity. In this phase of a cycle, the latch bar 32will have been withdrawn from the socket 30, thereby releasing impactmembers 12 and 14 for downward movement, and both valves A-1 and A-4 ofcylinder A will be open and admitting air pressure into each end of thecylinder. As previously mentioned, due to the transverse area of thepiston rod 22, which extends through a packing in the bottom end of thecylinder, this thereby causes a preponderance of pressure against theupper end of the piston P, which forces the impact members 12 and 14downwardly at a retarded rate of speed to effect a light impact of theram 28 in the clay dust 108 in the die cavity. During this stage, thegate 90 of hopper 84 is opened by cylinder E to deposit a quantity ofclay dust 108 into the dust box 68, which is still held in its startingposition by the piston in cylinder D.

FIG. 8 shows the ram 28 upon completion of the formation of a tile T. Inthis stage, the air pressure has been released from the bottom portionof cylinder A thereby applying the full air pressure against the top ofthe piston P, thereby accelerating the member 12 downwardly and bringingcontact plate 12a against contact plate 14-a with great force which istransmitted to the ram 28 to complete the pressing of clay dust 108 intoa tile T. As previously mentioned, the force of impact by member 12 isdetermined by acceleration of member 12 and to the vertical distancebetween contact plates 12-a and 14-a as governed by the axiallyadjustable rods 16. Further variations may be effected by the weight ofmember 12 and the air pressure applied through pipes 24 and 26, ascontrolled by air pressure regulators 25 and 27. At this stage the dustbox 68, now filled with clay dust, is still held in its startingposition.

FIG. 9 shows the start of the dust box with its charge of clay dust 108on its stroke across the die member 42, pushing the completed tile Ttherefrom. The air pressure has been released from the top of cylinder Athrough valve A-1 and the pressure applied to the bottom of the cylinderthrough valve A-4. At this time the latch bar 32 is forced into thesocket 20 by cylinder B under air pressure through valve B-3.Immediately before the clay dust in the dust box 68 reaches the edge ofthe die member 42 the air pressure is released from the top of cylinderC, through valve C-4 and the pressure applied to the bottom of thecylinder through valve C-l which raises the die case 46 to form the diecavity. As the dust box 68 continues its stroke the cavity will beevenly filled with clay dust through sweeping or wiping action o t efollowing and of the dust box, which will continue its stroke untilstopped under the hopper 86 to receive a supply of clay dust, which willbe deposited in the die cavity upon its return stroke to its startingposition, as shown in FIG. 2, to begin a new cycle of operation, asalready described. The dust box 68 may be stopped at each end of itsstroke by means of a collar 112 on a rod or bar 114 attached to thepiston rod 72 and the spaced abutments 116 on the platform 70, or byother suitable means.

From the foregoing description it will be seen that I have provided atile press having the following outstanding advantages over previousdesigns, namely (1) means for pressing tile Without the employment ofcams, screws or other conventional means, a press in which thepreliminary operation of expelling the air from the clay dust in the diecavity and the final pressing operation are almost simultaneous and,because of the speed of movement of the impact members, this pressoperates much faster than presses of previous designs; (2) both the airexpelling operation and the final impact operation are completelyadjustable as to both force and speed; (3) the great forces required tocompact tile are obtained through acceleration of weight, Without thenecessity of heavy motors and other expensive power equipment; (4) dueto the action of this press all applied forces are utilized incompacting the tile, and not dissipated; and (5) means for eliminatingthe return stroke of the dust box, thereby preventing the dragging ofadditional clay dust into the die cavity after it has been evenly filledduring the initial stroke of the dust box over the die cavity, therebyensuring a uniform deposit of clay dust in the die cavity and aresulting uniform thickness and compactness of the tile.

Since, as previously mentioned, the claims in this Divisionalapplication are all directed to the press mechanism by means of whichthe objects referred to in the above recital (5) are effected, it shouldbe understood that the mechanism described is applicable only to a press(1) in which the die cavity is formed by means of a die case 46 of thetype illustrated slidably mounted on a stationary vertically elongateddie member 42; (2) in which a horizontal platform 16, having an openingcoincident with the inner wall of the die case, is fixedly mounted onthe top of the die case and vertically movable therewith; in which thedust box 68 is slidably mounted on this platform; (3) and in which theair cylinder D for operating the dust box is fixedly mounted on theplatform in offset relation with the path of travel of the dust box, andvertically movable with the platform.

Therefore, my improved mechanism could not be applied or adapted to apress in which the die cavity is formed by means of a vertically movableelongated die member slidably mounted within an opening in a stationaryhorizontal platform on which the dust box is slidably mounted as, forexample, disclosed in Ackermann Patent 1,652,883, nor to a pressconstruction of the type disclosed in Van der Pyl Patent 2,674,008 or inLapidus Patent 3,060,540, all of which were cited in the parentapplication in connection with the subject matter of the presentDivisional application.

My improved press mechanism is simple, eflicient and economical, andensures the production of tile of uniform thickness and compactness andalso doubles the rate of production as compared with a press in whichthe dust box is supplied with dust at only one side of the die cavity.

Obviously, various modifications or changes may be made in my improvedmechanism without departing from the spirit or scope of my invention.Therefore, it should be understood that the embodiment of my inventionshown and described is intended to be illustrative, only, and restrictedonly by the appended claims.

I claim:

1. In a tile press of the type having a vertical base, a verticallyelongated stationary die member on a horizontal portion of said base, avertically movable die case slidably mounted over said stationary memberfor forming a die cavity, an open bottomed dust box horizontallyslidable on a platform across said die cavity for depositing clay dusttherein, said dust box having abutment means for pushing completed tilefrom the area of the die cavity, and a vertically movable ram on saidbase above the die cavity for pressing the clay dust deposited thereininto tile; means for depositing clay dust in said die cavity in a singlesweep of said dust box from either side of said cavity, said meanscomprising, in combination, a horizontal platform fixedly mounted on thetop of said die case and vertically movable therewith, said platformhaving an opening coincident with the inner wall of said die case, anair cylinder fixedly mounted on said platform in parallel, but offset,relation with the path of travel of said dust box and having means forattaching its piston to one end of said dust box, said air cylinderhaving communication at each end with a source of air pressure providedwith electrical pressure control valve means for effecting movement ofsaid dust box in either direction across, and a limited distance beyondthe farther edge of the die cavity; means for supplying clay dust tosaid dust box at either end of its stroke to be swept into the diecavity upon its next reverse stroke across said cavity; and the abutmentmeans on said dust box comprising projecting portions at both its endsfor abutment with a tile from either direction to push it from the areaof the die cavity.

2. A tile press as in claim 1 in which the means for supplying clay dustto the dust box comprises hoppers on opposite sides of the die cavitynormally closed at their bottoms by movable gates, and electricallycontrolled air pressure means for actuating said gates in cooperationwith said dust box and said vertically movable ram for selectivelydischarging clay dust from said hoppers into said dust box.

3. A tile press as in claim 1 and including a pair of stop abutments onthe platform spaced in parallel relation with the air cylinder, anoffset rod or bar attached to the piston rod of the air cylinder foreffecting movement of the dust box, said rod or bar extending rearwardlyin parallel relation with said air cylinder, and a single abutment atthe rear end of said offset rod or bar coengageable with one of saidstop abutments at either end of a stroke of the cylinder piston forpositively stopping the dust box under the opening in the bottom of theadjacent clay dust supply hopper.

4. A tile press as in claim 1, including electrically controlled aircylinder means for actuating said die casing, said dust box and saidvertically movable ram in cooperative sequence for effecting downwardmovement of said ram only after the dust box has cleared the area of thedie cavity.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,652,883 12/1927Ackermann 25103 3,179,998 4/1965 Lamb 25-102 FOREIGN PATENTS 526,946 6/1931 Germany.

J. SPENCER OVERHQLSER r ma y xa i er.

1. IN A TILE PRESS OF THE TYPE HAVING A VERTICAL BASE, A VERTICALLYELONGATED STATIONARY DIE MEMBER ON A HORIZONTAL PORTION OF SAID BASE, AVERTICALLY MOVABLE DIE CASE SLIDABLY MOUNTED OVER SAID STATIONARY MEMBERFOR FORMING A DIE CAVITY, AN OPEN BOTTOMED DUST BOX HORIZONTALLYSLIDABLE ON A PLATFORM ACROSS SAID DIE CAVITY FOR DEPOSITING CLAY DUSTTHEREIN, SAID DUST BOX HAVING ABUTMENT MEANS FOR PUSHING COMPLETED TILEFROM THE AREA OF THE DIE CAVITY, AND A VERTICALLY MOVABLE RAM ON SAIDBASE ABOVE THE DIE CAVITY FOR PRESSING THE CLAY DUST DEPOSITED THEREININTO TILE; MEANS FOR DEPOSITING CLAY DUST IN SAID DIE CAVITY IN A SINGLESWEEP OF SAID DUST BOX FROM EITHER SIDE OF SAID CAVITY, SAID MEANSCOMPRISING, IN COMBINATION, A HORIZONTAL PLATFORM FIXEDLY MOUNTED ON THETOP OF SAID DIE CASE AND VERTICALLY MOVABLE THEREWITH, SAID PLATFORMHAVING AN OPENING COINCIDENT WITH THE INNER WALL OF SAID DIE CASE, ANAIR CYLINDER FIXEDLY MOUNTED ON SAID PLATFORM